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Growth and Opportunities in African Higher Education

It is clear that Sub-Saharan Higher Education has been expanding in recent years and there is growing pressure for further expansion with Higher Education being key to the African Union’s 2063 Agenda for the transformation of Africa. With that in mind, we were delighted to host the Business Council for Africa’s “Education Forum” in March.

Countries across Africa now see the benefits of tertiary education to fuel their economies, particularly in the “African Lion” economies, including Ethiopia, South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt.

Whilst the demand is clearly there, across Africa, the HE sector is not yet in a position to meet that demand due to a shortage of funding and suitably qualified staff. Universities outside of Africa have so far been reluctant to engage with African universities, but with opportunities diminishing elsewhere, with countries such as China and India developing their own HE infrastructure, that may well change, as European and US universities look for new opportunities in their continuing drive for greater internationalisation (provided the funding can be found).